


Their Play

by chatnoiristhebest5



Series: His/Her [5]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Alya Césaire and Nino Lahiffe Ship It, Attempt at Humor, Dorks in Love, F/M, Fluff, Kissing, Let's pretend Lila doesn't exist, Matchmakers Alya Césaire & Nino Lahiffe, Oblivious Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir and Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Post-Reveal Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Pre-Relationship, The class is reading "Romeo and Juliet"
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-19
Updated: 2021-03-19
Packaged: 2021-03-27 16:41:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,233
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30125763
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chatnoiristhebest5/pseuds/chatnoiristhebest5
Summary: Marinette grew anxious, raising an eyebrow at Alya, whose grin only grew wider and more suspicious. Grabbing her copy of the play, Marinette frantically skimmed through the scene. Once she reached the end, she closed her eyes for a second, letting out a shakey breath.There was a kiss in the scene. Technically, two kisses. Romeo and Juliet kissed in the scene. And while Marinette knew they'd eventually kiss, she didn't realize it would happen so soon. All at once, Alya's grins, nods, and looks shared with Nino had a crystal clear reason. Surely, they would want to read Romeo and Juliet's parts for the day, right?Marinette sighed in relief. For a second, she had panicked and thought Alya and Nino were scheming for her and Adrien. In reality, though, they just were being couple-y. At least, that's what Marinette hoped.---Or: in which Marinette and Adrien are oblivious, Alya and Nino scheme/play matchmakers, and fluff ensues.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Series: His/Her [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2036758
Comments: 4
Kudos: 33





	Their Play

**Author's Note:**

> Am I currently reading Romeo and Juliet in English? Yes. Did that inspire this? Absolutely. Enjoy!

Adrien was running late. After a patrol with Marinette the night before, he hadn't been able to sleep. It had been two months since they'd decided to reveal their identities to each other, and they had been torture. With Marinette being the guardian, they had come to the decision that it would be better if they knew so nothing like New York would ever happen again. 

After finding out Marinette and his lady were the same person, Adrien had fallen ten times harder. (He hadn't thought it was possible, yet it happened, much to Plagg's dismay.) But, of course, Adrien knew there was another guy that Marinette loved--which he guessed was Luka--so he tried to keep his feelings on the down low. 

Apparently, it wasn't enough, because Alya and Nino had confronted him about it. According to them, it was obvious that he was crushing very hard on Marinette, but Marinette's obliviousness didn't allow her to understand that. They hinted that he had a chance, which Adrien didn't understand, and he'd kind of shrugged it off. How could he have a chance if she was in love with someone else?

Then Nino and Alya decided to scheme. They told him to read ahead in "Romeo and Juliet," and memorize Act 1, Scene 5. Adrien had previously read the play, because his father had wanted him to be ahead back when he was homeschooled, so he didn't have to do much. They had him leave the rest to them.

Adrien hoped whatever they were scheming wouldn't make Marinette uncomfortable. That was the last thing he wanted.

* * *

They were reading "Romeo and Juliet," which, of course, was part of the syllabus. They'd all known it was coming, that wasn't out of the ordinary. But with the thinly veiled mischief in Alya's eyes, Marinette knew she was up to something. And, whatever it was, it didn't give Marinette a very good feeling in her gut.

Marinette gave another side glance to Alya, who had a suspiciously wide grin on her face as she gave a quick nod to Nino. Nino gave her a quick hat tilt before turning around in his seat. Was Nino in on whatever she was planning too?

Before Marinette could ponder anything longer, Adrien rushed in as Ms. Bustier entered and closed the door behind her. Her teacher waited for everyone to settled down before grabbing her copy of "Romeo and Juliet" and announcing, "Today I'm excited to read Act 1, Scene 5." Murmurs of excitement echoed through the room.

Marinette grew anxious, raising an eyebrow at Alya, whose grin only grew wider and more suspicious. Grabbing her copy of the play, Marinette frantically skimmed through the scene. Once she reached the end, she closed her eyes for a second, letting out a shakey breath. 

There was a kiss in the scene. Technically, two kisses. Romeo and Juliet kissed in the scene. And while Marinette knew they'd eventually kiss, she didn't realize it would happen so soon. All at once, Alya's grins, nods, and looks shared with Nino had a crystal clear reason. Surely, they would want to read Romeo and Juliet's parts for the day, right? 

Marinette sighed in relief. For a second, she had panicked and thought Alya and Nino were scheming for her and Adrien. In reality, though, they just were being couple-y. At least, that's what Marinette hoped.

As people volunteered to read parts, Marinette grew alarmed once again when Nino took the part of Benvolio and Alya took the part of the Nurse. What happened to their plan to be Romeo and Juliet? Or, had that not been a plan, at all?

The parts of Romeo and Juliet were still not filled, and it seemed that no one in the class wanted to read them. Not even Chloe had volunteered. Nino whispered something to Adrien, which caused him to raise his hand.

"Yes, Adrien?" Ms. Bustier asked.

Even before his response, Marinette knew what he was going to say. "I'll read Romeo's part for the day."

"Alright, so now we need a Juliet. Who hasn't read yet?" Her teacher asked, scanning a sheet of paper were she kept track of who read and when. "Ah, Marinette, you'll be our Juliet."

Marinette regretted not reading before, her throat suddenly dry. Would she have to kiss Adrien? Had she brushed her teeth that morning? Could she say she was getting sick and didn't want Adrien to get sick, too? Before she could do anything or say anything, the scene started and the first readers entered the "stage"--which was just the front of the classroom--to read their parts.

As the scene carried on, Marinette kept glancing at the clock. Maybe they wouldn't get to that part of the scene that day? 

But, alas, her turn to read came. As she got up, nervous energy on the verge of bursting, she tripped over someone's bag. She waited for the impact of the ground to hit her, almost grateful for tripping and somewhat hoping for the result to be a bloody nose, but the hard impact never came. Instead, she found that she fell against something warm, but firm. When she opened her eyes, she realized she'd fallen right into Adrien's arms.

Of course, she did. Why couldn't her clumsiness lead to a bloodied nose when she needed it? Why was it that at school she always had Adrien to catch her? (He even did as Chat Noir, before knowing who she was.)

Stumbling out of Adrien's warm, safe arms, Marinette cleared her throat and waited as Adrien spoke. However, she couldn't pay attention to his words as looked at her with such an expression of awe. Of course, he was probably just acting the part, but it was enough to cause her heartbeat triple in speed and her stomach to do flips.

When she realized it was her turn, she spoke shakily, staring at her play copy, "Good pilgrim, you do wrong your hand too much, Which mannerly devotion shows in this; For saints have hands that pilgrims’ hands do touch, And palm to palm is holy palmers’ kiss."

Adrien stepped closer, taking her hand in his, "Have not saint lips, and holy palmers too?"

Marinette glanced at the play copy in her other hand, then back at him, "Ay, pilgrim, lips they must use in prayer."

"O then, dear saint, let lips do what hands do. They pray: grant thou, lest faith turn to despair." It was then that Marinette realized that Adrien was even closer, his body heat radiating off of him and making her a bit dizzy.

"Saints-saints do not move, though grant for prayers' sake," she stuttered, cheeks aflame.

Adrien's next words were barely above a whisper as he leaned down, his breath fanning over her face, "Then move not while my prayer's affect I take." 

Then, he moved closer, his eyes questioning. Clearly, he wanted to know if she was ok with him kissing her. Of course he would ask, why wouldn't he? Even if he seemed all flirty and playful as Chat Noir, he was always a gentleman at heart. She nodded once, quick and discreet. After all, it was just for a play. They were acting. That was all. Right?

When he closed the distance between them and kissed her softly, her knees turned weak. His hand left hers and held her waist gently, pulling her closer. Marinette rose on the tips of her toes, her free hand entangling in his golden locks while her other hand rested on his chest. He tilted his head, to deepen the kiss, but someone cleared their throat.

Slowly, they pulled away blinking at each other. Ok, so maybe the dazed expression and the flush on Adrien's face wasn't just really talented acting. And even if it was, it didn't explain why his heart hammered under her hand. 

When someone coughed, their bubble burst. Marinette took a step back as Adrien rubbed at the back of his neck, eyes scanning the play. Marinette took the opportunity to look through the script as well, and remembered there was supposed to be another kiss. Right. Would she be able to survive? Or would she just turn into a pile of jelly? Maybe she would spontaneously combust?

She wasn't sure.

Thankfully, mercifully, the bell rang. Ms. Bustier clapped her hands together, "Good job everyone that read today, we'll finish the scene tomorrow."

As everyone shuffled around, gathering their things to go to their next class, Marinette's gaze locked with Adrien, whose cheeks where bright pink. He nodded once in silent agreement; they'd have to talk about that later in the day.

* * *

Adrien sighed, detransforming as he landed on Marinette's balcony. He'd been distracted all day thanks to the little kiss they shared for acting purposes. When he'd let Alya and Nino scheme, he didn't know what to expect. But when no one in the class volunteered to be Romeo _or_ Juliet, he grew a bit wary. When Nino nudged his foot and whispered, _"There's your chance,"_ he knew it was no coincidence. But had Alya really gotten all their classmates on board with her plan?

Adrien flushed thinking about how Marinette tripped and fell right into his arms. He hadn't left his bag that far out in the walkway, it had to be Nino's doing. Then when he'd started speaking, he remembered how her mouth fell sack and she stared at him wide-eyed, cheeks tinged pink. His heart sped up as he recalled the feel of soft lips, the taste strawberry, the--

The trapdoor flew open, startling Adrien enough to make him jump. 

"Sorry!" Marinette squeaked, her arms waving around, "I didn't realize what time it was, and if it wasn't for Tikki seeing Plagg eating the cheese plate I set out for him, I don't think I would've known you were here."

Adrien blinked at her for a moment. Her hair was down. Her hair was down and he wasn't sure his brain was functioning anymore. Oh, dear. When she tilted her head to the side, he realized her was staring. "Uh, it's, erm, it's fine! Don't worry, haha..." 

_Great job, Agreste,_ he thought to himself. _Very smooth. Much suave._ He realized then that he'd spent too much time with Plagg and his sarcasm was rubbing off on him.

"Well," Marinette said, eyebrow quirked questioningly for a moment before she smiled too brightly, "come in before you freeze out there."

It was then that the light breeze picked up, the cold, winter air making Adrien shiver. He must've not noticed because of his run and then, well, his face had been on fire. 

Following Marinette inside, he sat rigidly on her chaise, while she plopped down on her desk chair. He knew from the way Marinette's eyes darted around and never landed on him, that she was trying to figure out how to get to the topic of the kiss. After watching her eyes avoid him for a few minutes (or was it just seconds?), Adrien decided he had to break the ice.

"So...the kiss. Uh, what happened?" Adrien really wasn't sure what he was asking about. Why was she ok with kissing him? Why she'd been a bit enthusiastic? The fact that, to his knowledge, there someone else she loved? Maybe it was all of the above.

Marinette blinked at him a few times, cheeks flushing. "Well, um," she paused for a moment, taking a deep breath, "I didn't tell you this because I wasn't sure how to do so, but remember that 'other boy' I loved? That was you, Adrien. And, I'll be honest, a part of me was slowly falling for Chat Noir, too. I just wasn't sure how to say it since I kept messing it up every time I tried to confess."

Adrien's brain definitely wasn't sure how to function anymore. Marinette loved him? The entire time? His brain-to-mouth filter must've not been working because he blurted, "You told me you didn't love me. As Adrien, I mean."

It was obviously the wrong thing to say because Marinette winced. "I panicked."

Adrien nodded slowly. That made sense. Well, maybe not _totally_ , but things don't always make sense when someone panics. When his eyes found Marinette again, she looked at him, hopeful. But why?

"Um, what about you?" She asked. What about him? "What happened with you?" 

Didn't she know he loved her? He told her all the time--oh wait. No, he hadn't really mentioned it often since the reveal. It was ironic, really. He'd fallen so much harder, but had to hold back even more. Or, at least, he thought he had. 

"I've always loved you, Marinette," he told her honestly, holding her hand in his. When she'd moved so close to him, he didn't know. "Knowing who you were in the end, I just fell even harder. I thought you would want space after the reveal, since I thought you loved someone else, so I gave you that. But I never stopped loving you. I don't think I can," he murmured, pressing a kiss to her knuckles as he held her gaze. 

She smiled softly at him, brushing a lock of hair out of his face before cradling his cheek. Kissing his forehead she murmured, "I'm glad that's all cleared up now."

He grinned at her, "Me too."

**Author's Note:**

> So, the way they're reading the play is how my class was supposed to read it (though I don't think there would've been any actual kissing) but with COVID-19, we're just reading it out loud which is a bit boring. 
> 
> Anyway, what'd you think of this little one-shot? Let me know!


End file.
